The Origin Of World Religions.

Friends this is a very special topic as we all are related to it in some or the other way. I know that some of u reading this article may be an atheist.. but no matter how much we ignore 'The All father(God) and religions' we simply are the part of it because humans are social beings and if we have to live in a community then it becomes mandatory to follow certain laws. In the terms of a layman 'a religion is a way to reach god…so that we could ask for his mercy on us, so that we can be strong to face up dangers of life'.

In Terms of a historian 'Religion is a constitution for the community or society belonging to a common Ethnicity'.

Now today I will be telling u something about major religions of the world which grew b/w 1500BC-AD600. They are:-

1. HINDUISM
2. BUDDHISM
3. CONFUCIANISM and DAOISM
4. ZOROASTRIANISM and JUDAISM
5. CHRISTIANITY

[NOTE:- Islam has not been taken up because it originated around AD630 and it is a much larger topic to cover with others.]

The explanation below will be only regarding the origin, spread and influence(not the philosophical part) of a particular religion.

• HINDUISM - Based on the local beliefs , holy writings and sacred scriptures just like any other religion the Hinduism is the oldest religion amongst us. The VEDAS(sacred texts) first compiled by sagas or rishis basically are the perfect combination of Myths , Legends & Hymns. Its nascence lies in the beliefs , rituals & the sacrificial culture introduced by Indo-Aryans to India around 1500BC. It also contains the features of its indigenous culture ie; the Indus Valley Culture.

The Hindus believe in the trans-migration of souls, worship of deities, strict social stratification based on caste system etc. It's unfortunate that such a great religion remained within the borders of India only. However, it was introduced to some regions of Southeast Asia. 1st evidence of Hindu presence was in the island of Java where Salakanagara Kingdom dominated the whole region(c.130-362AD). The Famous temple of AnkorWat built in 12th century is the best testament of Hinduism and is not only the largest Vishnu Temple but also the largest religious monument in the world.

The remarkable ability to assimilate rather than exclude different religions within itself has made it the longest standing religion till date.

• BUDDHISM - The prince of Lumbini named Siddhartha Gautama was the founder of Buddhism. He attained Nirvana(enlightened) and became to be called as Buddha. During 600BC number of sects arose in opposition to the tyrant behavior of Hinduism. The Buddhism and Jainism were the prominent one's among them. They were fed up of Hinduism which had degraded its reputation over the period of time through superstitious rituals, caste domination etc. Some of the beliefs of Buddhism match with Hinduism like 'Cycle of Re-birth'. Its peaceful war against Hinduism was the main reason why Buddhism could not hold its ground at its birth place(India). 1st official backing to Buddhism was given by 'Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great' , he built various Stupas(a monument used to house relics of lord Buddha) and Viharas(a Buddhist monastery) he also spread Buddha's message via Pillar and Rock Edicts. He sent buddhist Missionaries and special officers called 'Dharma Mahamatras' to distant lands like Srilanka, Gandhara, Java, Sumatra, Cambodia, China, Thailand etc to spread Buddhism.

A Buddhist monk named Bodhidharma(c.500BC) travelled to china to spread Buddhism. He also physically trained(the art of Kalaripayattu) the Monks of Shaolin Monastery which ultimately gave birth to the world famous art of 'Shaolin Kungfu'.from China and central Asia Buddhism spread to Japan and Korea as well.

Today it is a dominant religion in South East Asia, China and Japan. When the 'Rise of Saracens' began the Buddhism lost its territories to Islam in 700AD.

Statue of Confucius, located in Harbin Confucian Temple, Heilongjiang, China

• Confucianism and Daoism -  When Bodhidharma arrived in China, 2 major philosophies were dominant there:-

1. Confucianism - It was named after Confucius(one of the major administrators of one of the warring tribes who fought amongst themselves before China was united as an Empire). Confucianism gave the people of china a 'Moral Set of Rules' which taught them a way of life. The Confucius philosophy was the prerequisite knowledge to get throught the 'Chinese Civil Services Examination'. Yes the Chinese had a long tradition of conducting a CSE for The Imperial Court. The emperors did not appoint there officers and ministers arbitrarily. This special feature is not found in any of the kingdoms or empires of our history. It can be one of the causes why the Chinese dynasties firmly ruled for long-long years, as a had a large number of loyal and sharply educated recruits in offices to advice the Emperor. This CSE was just like the IAS exam conducted in India for civil services, the only difference was the content and pattern of exam in which Confucius philosophy was asked. This tradition is about 2000 years old.
2. Daoism - It taught people a way of living in a peace full and harmonious manner. It was based on the teachings of philosopher Lao-tze. The religion was a combination of cosmology and worship of Nature.

Star Of David Jewish Religion.

• Zoroastrianism and Judaism - The Sister civilization of Indo-Aryan culture ie; Iranian or Persian civilization was the center of Zoroastrianism in 1000BC. Zarathustra was the propounder of this religion. Very few people know that Zoroastrianism had a very profound impact over Judaism, Islam and Christianity and we all know that Judaism, Christianity and Islam all are linked to the Mythical legends of Adam(the 1st person god created).

The Avesta is the most sacred book to Zoroastrians just like Gita is to the Hindus. Ahura-Mazda is the supreme God. Zoroastrianism was at its peak time when the Persian Achaemenid Empire adopted it as a state religion. IT was ravaged and displaced by Hellenistic beliefs when Alexander The Great conquered Persia. Later in medieval world it was again revived when Parthian and Sassanian Empires took it as the state religion but after the arrival of Islam in 7th century it was totally wiped out as the dominant religion and the Zoroastrian community migrated all over the world from Persia in groups.

Faravahar, the symbol of Zoroastrians, Yazd, Iran, 17th century.

Now, Judaism has interesting Myths and legends attached but we are not going in the depth of it., but the Jewish community is the oldest business community of human race. These people were originally known as Phoenicians and had a large trading Empire covering the coastal areas from Strait of Gibraltar to Tripoli's in the northern Africa and had its influence over Egyptians and their holy land of Jerusalem. But after they lost war to the Romans they were shrinked rapidly to the eastern Mediterranean coast with cities named Phoenicia, Israel, Philistia and Judah.

There teachings are from the old testament of Bible.

• Christianity - As we all know Lord Jesus Christ was the founding figure of Christianity and it has its roots in Judaism. He was born in Nazareth as the son of God- the messiah who arrived on earth as promised in the Jewish tradition of Old Testament. He was crucified and given a painful death for his radical teachings and negative thoughts against the realm of Roman Pagans.

The Christianity was long believed to be another sect of Judaism by Romans and was ignored by them. Even when Jesus was being crucified, it was not a great news to the world. Even the roman Governor who signed his death sentence was unaware of Jesus Christ and why was he going to be punished. He was just a common man with a little bit influence among his followers.

The turning point came for Christianity when Roman Emperor Constentine1 adopted it as a state religion. As the Roman Empire was huge, it was more than enough for Christian Missionaries to spread their message all over the known world.

Christ's teachings were written down in the new testament. The Christianity faced the Great Schism in 1054AD and was divided into Latin or Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox Churches. The small unification came for the bloody Crusades of 1095-1291AD for the re-conquest of Holy land against the Islamic world. Another spreading of Christianity came up in the beginning of modern era after 1500AD when Spanish ships reached out for the New World and the Colonial period began.

It has been a lengthy article I'll really appreciate it if you read it completely and let me know in the comment section how was it and please correct me if I have made any mistakes regarding the Facts of history….